Hugo Weaving

Though he shied away from big Hollywood blockbusters early in his career, actor Hugo Weaving went on to have prominent supporting roles - typically as the villain - in some of the biggest movie franch...
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In the beginning of Happy Feet you might think a handful of moviegoers forgot to silence their cell phones; it’s just the emperor penguins singin’ their beaks off to one of any number of songs popular circa 2003. In Antarctica that’s how they stick together--it’s how they harmonize so to speak. But with the birth of one penguin Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood) the whole colony is shaken up. Mumble has the voice of a puberty-stricken boy and is unable to keep a tune but he can dance like the dickens! His mother Norma Jean (voiced by Nicole Kidman) thinks it’s a cute habit but his father (voiced by Hugh Jackman) and the rest of the tight-knit community ostracize him. After toiling around a while with his new buddies (of which two are voiced by Robin Williams) some of whom are “Latino penguins ” Mumble realizes his only chance at redemption is to find the source of the penguins’ current fish famine--and he’ll stop at nothing not even “aliens." Robin Williams is quite the odd bird himself. Nowadays--movie-wise at least--he’s better heard and not seen (i.e. voice-over roles like this one) whereas his mile-a-minute physicality was once a necessary evil to get the full 3-D effect of his personality. His animated self obviously less in-your-face Williams’ dialogue does all the work in Feet and gives a performance that matches his beloved Aladdin Genie. Frodo alert: Wood also starring in this weekend’s Bobby hits all the er wrong notes to turn in a solid performance as the movie’s lead Mumble. Since he sounds (and looks) much younger to most people than his actual age (25) it’s another in his long line of impeccable role choices. As the unattainable object of Mumble’s affection Brittany Murphy stars as Gloria a character that if nothing else allows the actress to display her singing talents as a preview of her reported upcoming album. (Yes seriously.) The biggest names Kidman and Jackman with small parts don’t offer much besides superficial mainstream appeal but bit parts from Hugo Weaving Anthony LaPaglia and the late Steve Irwin round out the formidable cast with some zing. Penguins have long been ripe for the animating what with their waddling clumsiness and stuffed-animal cuteness. March of the Penguins outed them as lovable misunderstood Antarctic creatures Madagascar turned them into ‘toon comedians and now Feet director and co-writer George Miller (Mad Max) gives them the full treatment by animating and literally humanizing them. Miller’s labor of love which he’d deliberated over for some time encompasses all the kiddie messages we’ve come to expect while managing to toss in the rare animation curveball: ecological themes. Miller is clearly an animal lover--he also wrote and produced Babe--a passion he ties into the film without forcing. But the animation nonstop musical numbers and technical aspect of the film will truly and pleasantly surprise you. In fact a few scenes in particular involving humans juxtaposed with animated penguins make for memorable images--and messages. He and his team of co-writers Warren Coleman John Collee and Judy Morris also formulate typically quicker-witted dialogue for the primarily Aussie cast but it’s the overall heartwarming tale and execution thereof that’ll have you smiling all movie long.

In the future London won’t be quite as jolly good as its present version according to V for Vendetta. That’s where V (Hugo Weaving) comes in. Equal parts Batman Jack the Ripper Phantom of the Opera and Michael Moore V is out to sabotage the totalitarian British regime that oppresses its citizens and that turned him into the masked monster he is. Along the way he saves a young girl named Evey (Natalie Portman) and tries to turn her on to his cause. She’s not quite keen on V’s terrorist tactics but something inside endears her to the man behind the mask--a man only she can truly reach. V’s mission is one of more than mere terrorism though: he hopes to unite all civilians and make the government fear its people instead of vice versa. As Nov. 5 looms Evey uncovers V’s secrets while V does the same to the government making it a fifth of November they’re sure to remember. Bravery as applied to a Hollywood performance is bandied about much too often when used in earnest. But if used somewhat superficially it aptly describes Portman’s head-shaving scene--about the “bravest” thing a beautiful actress can do in the context of a movie--especially since it was captured in a single take! G.I. Jane aside the greatest classiest actress of her generation again shows why in a dazzling performance. Forget the faux accent it’s the raw emotion she displays especially in the film’s latter stages that’s positively Streep-like and most captivating. And did we mention that even sans her flowing locks she’s not too rough on the eyes? Weaving’s in equally precarious territory hiding behind a mask. But it adds a perfect mystique to that impeccable eloquence and enunciation of his evoking that of his Agent Smith in the Matrix flicks. The European Stephens (Fry and Rea) too provide acting muscle and will hopefully and deservedly gain some American exposure. Larry and Andy Wachowski are the main story here even though V is directed by their assistant director on the Matrix trilogy James McTeigue. He’s responsible for the film’s look and what an eye-catching look it is but the Wachowskis who wrote and produced no doubt watched over his shoulder and might be more responsible for its feel. The feel is like the brothers themselves very complex. Much as they may not like it they’re a veritable Hollywood brand and that means if they set out to make a message piece it’s going to be big-budgeted. Such contradictory goals make for occasional incoherence. There’s also some indulging: referencing “America’s War” in a film set in the not-so-distant future for example seems cheap propaganda. Yet many issues remain compelling and McTeigue sets the right mood for them with the help of great music choices (Cat Power Antony &amp; the Johnsons et al).

First-time director Sarah Watt won the top honors at Saturday night's Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards, taking home both the Best Direction and Best Film prizes for Look Both Ways.
Watt also picked up the Best Original Screenplay award for the low-budget movie, her first feature-length production, at the Melbourne ceremony.
Elsewhere, the Best Lead Actor and Best Lead Actress honors went to Little Fish co-stars Hugo Weaving and Cate Blanchett, respectively.
Russell Crowe, who hosted the event, picked up the International Award for Best Actor for his performance in Cinderella Man, while Emily Browning took home the International Award for Best Actress for Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events.
Rockers Nick Cave and Warren Ellis won Best Original Music Score for The Proposition.
The winners at the 2005 AFI Awards included:
Best Film--Look Both Ways
Best Lead Actor--Hugo Weaving for Little Fish
Best Lead Actress--Cate Blanchett for Little Fish
Best Direction--Sarah Watt for Look Both Ways
Best Original Screenplay--Sarah Watt for Look Both Ways
Best Adapted Screenplay--Robert Connolly, Elliot Perlman for Three Dollars
Best Supporting Actress--Noni Hazlehurst for Little Fish
Best Supporting Actor--Anthony Hayes for Look Both Ways
Best Editing--Alexandre De Franceschi, John Scott for Little Fish
Best Original Music Score--Nick Cave, Warren Ellis for The Proposition
Best Production Design--Chris Kennedy for The Proposition
Best Costume Design--Margot Wilson for The Proposition
Best Sound--Sam Petty, Peter Grace, Robert Sullivan, Yulia Akerholt for Little Fish
Best Cinematography--Benoit Delhomme for The Proposition
International Award for Best Actor--Russell Crowe for Cinderella Man
International Award for Best Actress--Emily Browning for Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
International Award for Excellence in Filmmaking--Roger Savage for House of Flying Daggers
Byron Kennedy Award--Chris Kennedy
Longford Life Achievement Award--Ray Barrett
Readers' Choice Award--Cate Blanchett
Young Actor Award--Sophie Luck for Blue Water High
Article Copyright World Entertainment News Network All Rights Reserved.

V for Vendetta film bosses have denied the terrorism-themed movie is being delayed because of London's recent bomb attacks--they insist technical difficulties are responsible for the date change.
The film stars Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaving against the terrifying backdrop of bombings on the London underground, but producers are refusing to re-edit the scenes which closely mimic recent murderous events in the city.
The movie release date has been moved from November until next year.
A Warner Brothers source explains, "The film is still in post-production and the visual effects wouldn't be completed in time. That's why it's being postponed.
"There might also be some extra shooting days but none of the scenes involving the Underground are being altered."
Article Copyright World Entertainment News Network All Rights Reserved.

Sadly The Matrix sequel suffers from too much anticipation too much talk and too much action--an obtuse shitstorm apparently resulting from writer/directors the Wachowski brothers' theory that if they throw enough at you something's gotta stick. While the first movie's wow-inducing special effects and groundbreaking action scenes supported the story's mythology and ruminations about consciousness and free will Reloaded beats you over the head with philosophical mumbo-jumbo and pointless battles that will convince you The Matrix series is really meant for 15-year-old boys into video games. In a nutshell the ruling artificial intelligence (the nebulous vague "Machines") has learned humans are running amok in a place called Zion so 250 000 Sentinels are on their way to take care of biz once and for all. Renegade Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) insisting that "The One" will save the world ventures in and out of the Matrix with Neo (Keanu Reeves) and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) to fight the Machines while the less courageous rest of humanity stays underground to prepare for battle the old-fashioned way. Meantime Neo wants to find out what's behind his strange premonitory dreams--that we get to see over and over and over--of Trinity meeting her demise.
Forget the "real world" melancholy of The Matrix the shock and awe of its special effects its lines of cryptic cyber-wisdom that made little sense but were entertainingly apropos. The new and returning faces of Reloaded are barely more than haute-couture wearing Zen-spouting caricatures stuck in bad CGI sets with just about as little idea of what they're doing there as the audience has. Their lines alternate between theological psychobabble: "If you know what I know then I know you know"; Neo's statements of the obvious: "I wish I knew what I was supposed to do"; and Morpheus bellowing pompous speeches like Demosthenes on Quaaludes: "Izznn't thaaat worth dyyying fooorr!" Despite playing all 200-plus Agent Smiths Hugo Weaving has little to do or say other than smirk evilly although when he's on-screen the movie regains a little of its predecessor's life. Neo and Trinity are either busy kicking ass or making out which is great because it keeps them from reciting any more trite and silly dialogue. Reeves wisely sticks to his strong silent Neo and Moss proves herself yet again to be a terrific action heroine who doesn't need to say a lot to make her point--its a shame the script sold them short. Lambert Wilson is amusing as campily evil Frenchie Merovingian and the late Gloria Foster is a lovely breath of fresh air in her all-too-brief appearance as the Oracle--her scene with Neo is one of the film's most--er few--engaging.
You can practically see the perforation in the film at those scenes that should've been left on the editing floor. To wit: The first 40 minutes offer up development of new characters you couldn't care less about boring interplay between those returning and an introduction to Zion (hardly a fantastically realized human oasis but rather an endless well of crisscrossing walkways that lead nowhere unless it's to some underground Versace factory that pumps out everyone's stylie leather jackets and sunglasses). Things really get bizarre when Morpheus announces to the populace that um humans have only 72 hours to kill the Machines or be killed which somehow compels his audience to break into a heaving groping stomping techno-hippie orgy (1 000 years in the future and we still have drum circles?!) as Trinity and Neo are somewhere else getting it on in perfect sync with this impromptu inexplicable Afro-Asian cave rave. The film does offer up some seamlessly slick albeit ultimately pointless and not that new special effects: Neo fights off multitudes of Agent Smiths although he could've just jetted away like Superman (it's 90 percent CGI 8 percent real and after 10 minutes 2 percent interesting); and a freeway chase has breath-stealing visuals that unfortunately lose some impact after 15 minutes. It's the speechifying that'll kill you though--by the time you get a clue to Neo's purpose on Earth in a mind-numbing diatribe of Baudrillardian hokum you'll want to get out of the theater faster than you can say Attack of the Clones.

An overgrown elf from the North Pole drew more moviegoers than any of this week's new wide releases as Elf took the No. 1 spot in its second week with a cheery $27.2 million* at the weekend box office.
Elf's impressive pre-holiday take was enough to beat out Russell Crowe's Napoleonic War epic, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, which followed in close second with $25.7 million.
Last week's box office champ, The Matrix Revolutions, lost more than 60 percent of its audience in its second week. The third and final chapter of The Matrix trilogy took in $16.3 million to place third.
Revolutions's take, however, was enough to push it past the $100 million mark, making it the 22nd film in 2003 to do so. Scary Movie 3, which came in seventh this week, became the 23rd film this year to cross $100 million. By comparison, a record 24 films beat that benchmark in 2002.
Animated fare rounded out the Top Five with Brother Bear taking in $12 million to take fourth place followed by Looney Tunes: Back in Action, which came in at No. 5 with $9.5 million.
THE TOP TEN
New Line Cinema's PG rated holiday comedy Elf captured the No. 1 title for the first time in its second week of release with a remarkable ESTIMATED $27.2 million (-12%) at 3,381 theaters (+44 theaters; $8,056 per theater). Its cume is approximately $71.2 million.
Directed by Jon Favreau, it stars Will Ferrell, James Caan, Bob Newhart, Ed Asner, Zooey Deschanel and Mary Steenburgen.
Twentieth Century Fox's PG-13 rated naval epic Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World debuted in second place with an ESTIMATED $25.7 million at 3,101 theaters, with a brawny $8,296 per theater average--the highest of any film playing this week.
Set against the backdrop of Napoleonic Wars, the film revolves around Capt. Jack Aubrey and his ship's surgeon, who sail out to see the richness and strangeness of life on the far side of the world.
Directed by Peter Weir, it stars Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany.
Warner Bros. R rated sci-fi actioner The Matrix Revolutions dropped two notches to third place in its second week with an ESTIMATED $25.7 million (-66%) in 3,502 theaters (unchanged; $4,660 per theater). Its cume is approximately $114.1 million.
Directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, it stars Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving.
Buena Vista's G rated animated film Brother Bear dropped one spot to fourth place in its fourth week with an ESTIMATED $16.3 million (-35%) in 3,030 theaters (unchanged; $4,660 per theater). Its cume is approximately $63 million.
Directed by Aaron Blaise and Bob Walker, it features the voices of Joaquin Phoenix, Jeremy Suarez, D.B. Sweeney and Michael Clarke Duncan.
Warner Bros.' PG rated live action feature Looney Tunes: Back in Action opened in fifth place with an ESTIMATED $9.5 million in 2,903 theaters with a $3,276 per theater average.
In the film, Daffy Duck gets tired of playing second fiddle to Bugs Bunny and quits Hollywood, teams up with recently fired stuntman Bobby Delmont and embarks on an around-the-world adventure to find a missing blue diamond.
Directed by Joe Dante, it stars Brendan Fraser, Jenna Elfman, Steve Martin, Timothy Dalton and Heather Locklear.
*Box office estimates provided by Exhibitor Relations, Inc.
Universal Pictures' R rated romantic comedy Love Actually stayed in the sixth spot in its second week with an ESTIMATED $8.8 million (+29%) in 1,177 theaters (+601 theaters; $7,545 per theater). Its cume is approximately $19 million.
Directed and written by Richard Curtis, it stars Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley and Bill Nighy.
Dimension Films' PG-13 rated spoof Scary Movie 3 fell three rungs to seventh place in its fourth week with an ESTIMATED $6.1 million (-44%) in 2,960 theaters (-328 theaters; $2,063 per theater). Its cume is approximately $102.3 million.
Directed by David Zucker, it stars Anna Faris, Charlie Sheen, Simon Rex, Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, George Carlin and Leslie Nielsen.
Sony Pictures' PG-13 rated drama Radio dropped three notches to eight place in its fourth week with an ESTIMATED $5 million (-31%) in 2,416 theaters (-395 theaters; $2,070 per theater). Its cume is approximately $43.7 million.
Directed by Michael Tollin, it stars Cuba Gooding, Jr. and Ed Harris.
Paramount Pictures' R rated documentary Tupac: Resurrection debuted in ninth place with an ESTIMATED $4.6 million at 801 theaters with a strong $5,818 per theater average.
The film is a documentary about iconic hip-hop artist Tupac Shakur, who was shot and killed in September 1996, narrated in his own words through a variety of interviews, journal readings, private home movies and never-before-seen concert footage.
Directed by Lauren Lazin and produced by Afeni Shakur, it features Tupac Shakur.
Warner Bros.' R rated drama Mystic River dropped two spots to tenth in its sixth week with an ESTIMATED $3.2 million (-31%) in 1,550 theaters (-31 theaters; $2,145 per theater). Its cume is approximately $45.6 million.
Directed by Clint Eastwood, it stars Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne, Laura Linney and Marcia Gay Harden.
WEEKEND COMPARISON
The Top 12 films this weekend grossed an ESTIMATED $124.2 million, down 13.57 percent from last weekend's $143.7 million take. The Top 12 movies were also down 23 percent from this time last year when they took in $161.3 million.
Last year, Warner Bros.' PG rated Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets debuted in first place with $88.3 million in 3,682 theaters ($23,997 per theater); Universal's R rated 8 Mile came in second place in its second week with $19.3 million in 2,496 theaters ($7,750 per theater); and Buena Vista's G rated The Santa Clause 2 came in third in its third week with $15.1 million in 3,346 theaters ($4,513 per theater).

The Matrix Revolutions expectedly took the box office this weekend--but it didn't have the juggernaut effect studio execs were hoping for.
While the third and final installment of the Matrix trilogy scored $24.3 million on its first day of release (Wednesday), it only managed $50.1 million* over the weekend, bringing the grand total to $85.4 million. This figure is way below the $100 million predicted by insiders,Variety reports, and illustrates how the Matrix excitement seems to have died down, especially since Revolutions' much-hyped predecessor The Matrix Reloaded opened in May with a hefty $91.7 million weekend total and went on to gross $737.9 million worldwide, making it the highest grossing film of 2003.
"I don't know what film could do $90 million and then repeat that with its next sequel just six months later," Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office tracker Exhibitor Relations, told The Associated Press.
Dan Fellman, head of domestic distribution for Warner Bros., told AP Revolutions may hold up better in subsequent weeks than Matrix Reloaded, whose grosses fell off considerably in its second weekend. Films tend to have longer shelf life over the holidays than they do in summer blockbuster season, he said.
"The story really isn't over yet," Fellman said. "We might not have had the same impact in the opening weekend, but you need to play this out for the next few weeks and see if we play a little catchup."
Around the globe, however, The Matrix Revolutions broke records, as its five-day grosses totaled $204 million, making it the biggest consecutive five-day opening in motion picture history, Business Wire.com reports. In an unprecedented move, Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow Pictures opened Revolutions at the same moment in time in 90 different countries on Nov. 5, as well as releasing on 60 IMAX theaters worldwide.
Although Revolutions was the weekend's clear winner, the Christmas spirit permeated the box office as well. Will Ferrell 's Christmas comedy Elf opened in second with a cheery $32.1 million, while the British holiday romantic comedy Love Actually, which debuted in limited theaters, came in at No. 6 with $6.6 million.
Some returning favorites included the animated Disney tale Brother Bear, now in its second week, which took third at $18.6 million, pushing the reigning champ of the past two weeks, Scary Movie 3, down to No. 4 with $11.1 million. The tearjerker Radio rounded out the top five with $7.4 million.
THE TOP TEN
Warner Bros. R-rated The Matrix Revolutions topped the box office charts with an ESTIMATED $50.1 million in 3,502 theaters. Its $14,322 per theater average was the highest of any film playing wide this week. Opening Wednesday, its cume is approximately $85.4 million.
In the third installment of the Matrix trilogy, the epic war between man and machine comes to a thundering crescendo as Neo, Trinty and Morpheus do battle against their enemies, including the ultimate evil Agent Smith.
Directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, it stars Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving and Jada Pinkett Smith.
New Line Cinema's delightful PG-rated Elf spread Christmas cheer at No. 2 with an ESTIMATED $32.1 million in 3,337 theaters ($9,619 per theater).
Buddy is a 6 ft. misfit who has been raised by Santa's elves in the North Pole. Obviously different from his elf family, he ultimately finds out about his true heritage and heads to New York City to seek out his roots.
Directed by Jon Favreau, it stars Will Ferrell as Buddy, James Caan, Bob Newhart, Ed Asner, Zooey Deschanel and Mary Steenburgen.
Buena Vista's G-rated animated film Brother Bear took third place in its second week with an ESTIMATED $18.6 million (-4%) in 3,030 theaters (unchanged; $6,139 per theater). Its cume is approximately $44.1 million.
Directed by Aaron Blaise and Bob Walker, it features the voices of Joaquin Phoenix, Jeremy Suarez, D.B. Sweeney and Michael Clarke Duncan.
Dimension Films' PG-13-rated spoof Scary Movie 3 got knocked from first to fourth place in its third week with an ESTIMATED $11.1 million (-45%) in 3,288 theaters (-217; $3,377 per theater). Its cume is approximately $93.3 million.
Directed by David Zucker, it stars Anna Faris, Charlie Sheen, Simon Rex, Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, George Carlin and Leslie Nielsen.
*Box office estimates provided by Exhibitor Relations, Inc.
Sony Pictures' PG-13-rated drama Radio dropped one notch to fifth place in its third week with an ESTIMATED $7.4 million (-23%) in 2,811 theaters (-263, $2,633 per theater). Its cume is approximately $36.3 million.
Directed by Michael Tollin, it stars Cuba Gooding, Jr. and Ed Harris.
Universal Pictures' R-rated romantic opus Love Actually opened in the sixth spot with an ESTIMATED $6.6 million in 576 theaters, managing a worthy $11,458 per theater average.
The film interweaves a collage of stories pertaining to that most cherished of emotions--true love--that culminates on Christmas Eve.
Directed and written by Richard Curtis, it stars Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley and Bill Nighy.
Warner Bros.' R-rated drama Mystic River drops a spot to No. 7 in its fifth week with an ESTIMATED $4.8 million (-23%) in 1,581 theaters (+30 theaters; $3,052 per theater). Its cume is approximately $40.4 million.
Directed by Clint Eastwood, it stars Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne, Laura Linney and Marcia Gay Harden.
New Line Cinema's R-rated horror remake The Texas Chainsaw Massacre fell considerably from third place to eighth in its fourth week with an ESTIMATED $4.8 million (-56%) in 2,378 theaters (-592 theaters; $2,019 per theater). Its cume is approximately $73.2 million.
Directed by Marcus Nispel, it stars Jessica Biel, Eric Balfour, Mike Vogel, Erica Leerhsen and Andrew Bryniarski.
Tying this week with Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Twentieth Century Fox's PG-13-rated courtroom thriller Runaway Jury slipped four spots to take ninth in its fourth week with also an ESTIMATED $4.8 million (-26%) in 2,133 theaters (-603; $2,250 per theater). Its cume is approximately $40.1 million.
Directed by Gary Fleder, it stars John Cusack, Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman and Rachel Weisz.
Paramount Pictures' PG-13-rated comedy School of Rock dropped two positions to tenth place in its ninth week with an ESTIMATED $3.1 million (-30%) in 1,982 theaters (-804 theaters; $1,589 per theater). Its cume is approximately $73.5 million.
Directed by Richard Linklater, it stars Jack Black, Joan Cusack and Michael White.
WEEKEND COMPARISON
The Top 12 films this weekend grossed an ESTIMATED $146.8 million, up a whopping 62.84 percent from last weekend's $90.2 million. The Top 12 movies were also up 13.16 percent from this time last year when they took in $129.8 million.
Last year, Universal's R-rated 8 Mile opened in first place with $51.2 million in 2,470 theaters ($20,745 per theater); Buena Vista's G-rated The Santa Clause 2 dropped from the first to second position in its second week with $24.7 million in 3,352 theaters ($7,379 per theater); and DreamWorks' R-rated thriller The Ring slipped a notch in its fourth week with $15.5 million in 2,927 theaters (+119; $5,298 per theater).

Warner Bros.' final installment of its Matrix trilogy opened Wednesday to $24.3 million at the domestic box office, the studio said Thursday. The Matrix Revolutions, which debuted simultaneously around the world, also earned $18.8 million internationally.
Although the figures are staggering, the film's one-day total are far below what The Matrix Reloaded amassed in its nationwide debut in May 2002. Reloaded, which opened with a few late-night screenings on Wednesday evening and expanded to 3,600 theaters the following day, earned about $37.5 million.
But Warner Bros.' president of distribution, Dan Fellman, was upbeat about Revolutions' figures. "It was a spectacular day at the box office," he told Variety. "We were hoping to get to the $20 million mark."
Fellman added that the short release window between Reloaded and Revolutions "meant that we couldn't build up the same frenzy that we would have had we held off."
Revolutions's one-day take ranked it the third best Wednesday opening for a movie, behind $28.5 million for 1999's Star Wars: Episode I--The Phantom Menace and $26.1 million for last year's The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
Movies usually open on Friday, drawing their biggest crowds on Saturday, but The Matrix Revolutions opened across 18,000 screens in 65 countries Wednesday to capitalize on the final part of the trilogy's popularity and to ward off piracy.
Revolutions also debuted stateside yesterday across 60 IMAX screens, the first time a Hollywood blockbuster has been released simultaneously in 35mm and IMAX's 15/70 formats.
According to Variety, Revolutions' five-day bow is expected to bring in more than $100 million, with a $200 million opening expected internationally.
In Australia, where Revolutions opened at 1 a.m. Thursday, it grossed $465,000 (U.S.) at 144 locations. European exhibitors, however, think the numbers will be high but not through the roof.
One German exec told Variety, "The general consensus is that the franchise was hurt by the cheesy Reloaded, which alienated core fans of the first pic, and Revolutions is not likely to bring them back."
Reviews for the film, directed by Andy and Larry Wachowski and starring Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving, have been less than stellar. The review-compiling Web site Rotten Tomatoes found that of 116 reviews from critics, only 43 positive were positive.

When Revolutions opens Neo (Keanu Reeves) is in an unfamiliar train station a "nowhere" between Zion and the Matrix. It looks like we're in for a brand-new head trip--a pretty cool one--and the first act of Revolutions is every bit as good as The Matrix perhaps because it makes so many allusions to that film: We revisit the Oracle's kitchen (albeit with a new Oracle in Mary Alice) where she's baking cookies for a little girl chain smoking and handing out prophesy. She and Neo lay out the plot for the trilogy's conclusion as concisely as two people speaking in riddles can manage: The Architect (whom we don't see until the end of the movie) is trying to "balance the equation" created by Neo (who is a programmatic anomaly). As a result Agent Smith's (Hugo Weaving) power and number are growing exponentially both within the Matrix and--if you recall the conclusion of Reloaded--inside Zion. To save the last human city the Oracle will have to make some sacrifices and Neo will have to "return to the source"--the Machine City where it all began.
The trouble comes for Revolutions when Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) and Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) pull Neo from the Matrix and return with him to Niobe's hovercraft. From there the movie largely abandons the four main characters as Trinity and Neo leave in one ship for Machine City while Morpheus and Niobe (Jada Pinkett Smith) leave in another for Zion where the last stand against the machines is beginning. This leaves us with exactly zero characters we care anything about during the ensuing way-too-long siege of Zion which results in about zero emotional investment for a good three-fifths of the movie. There's more action than acting in these interminable battle scenes and many of the new minor Zionites seem custom-created for heroic death scenes. The dorky Transformer-like APUs (Armored Personal Units) don't help and watching more swarming sentinels than you can shake a machine gun at gets old after awhile.
It may be metaphysically necessary for writers/directors/producers Andy and Larry Wachowski that Zion be less cool than the Matrix. Grim reality is rarely as entertaining as fantasy and that's probably the point. Like in a world defined by Thomas Hobbes the events in Zion are nasty and brutish but they are not regrettably short. By the time we finally make it back into the Matrix for the final duel between Agent Smith and Neo--the showdown that could bring peace to the planet and end the revolution forever--we've lost the thread. Why are we here again? Oh right. Love. Yes love. Neo so loved the world and all that…and because "everything that has a beginning has an end." The question is how does one end a trilogy when the whole thing's been based around the idea that nothing is what it seems? Audiences likely expect the kind of conclusion that lets you draw your own conclusions based on your experience of all that's gone before. Unfortunately that's not what Revolutions delivers. Instead what begins well ends so predictably that it's hard to believe it came from the minds that created the Matrix franchise. Maybe that's the Wachowskis' idea of a twist.

Co-starred with Richard Dreyfuss in "The Old Man Who Read Love Stories"

Once again voiced Rex for "Babe: Pig in the City"

Australian TV debut, "Kings"

Returned to the Australian stage in "The White Devil"

Offered a villainous turn as Agent Evans, a mysterious government official tracking Neo (Keanu Reeves) in "The Matrix," directed by the Wachowski brothers

Returned to the stage to star in the Sydney production of "Arcadia"

Co-produced and starred in "Russian Doll"; played a recently separated private detective who agrees to house his best friend's mistress

Played the title role as V in the Wachowski brothers' adaptation of "V for Vendetta"

Re-teamed with Cate Blanchett in a reprise of the STC production of "Hedda Gabler" in New York City

Reprised role as Megatron in the sequel "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"

Made feature film debut in "The City's Edge"

Raised in South Africa and England

Voiced the character of Noah the Elder in the animated sequel "Happy Feet Two"

Co-starred in Stephan Elliott's directorial debut "Frauds"

Returned to Middle Earth as Elrond in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien and directed by Peter Jackson

Portrayed Elrond in the Peter Jackson-directed trilogy adapted from the novel, The Lord of the Rings; the films were released as "The Fellowship of the Rings" (2001), "The Two Towers" (2002) and "The Return of the King" (2003)

Starred as a heroin-addicted ex-rugby league player in the Australian indie film "Little Fish," opposite Cate Blanchett

Moved with family to Australia

Co-starred in the Australian historical miniseries "Frontier"

Won acclaim for his portrayal of a blind photographer in "Proof"; directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse

Played a car thief who is interrogated by cops in "The Interview"

Once again played the evil Agent Evans in "The Matrix: Revelations"

Received international attention for his role in the hit film "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert"; directed by Stephan Elliott

Reprised role as Agent Evans in "Matrix Reloaded"

Met Stephan Elliott during the production of "The Right Handed Man"

Voiced the dog Rex in the hit film "Babe"

Played multiple roles in "Cloud Atlas," based on David Mitchell's 2004 novel; film co-directed by Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski, and Tom Tykwer

Joined the Sydney Theatre Company under a two-year, eight-play contract

Breakthrough TV role, played an English cricket player in the Australian miniseries "Bodyline"

Summary

Though he shied away from big Hollywood blockbusters early in his career, actor Hugo Weaving went on to have prominent supporting roles - typically as the villain - in some of the biggest movie franchises in cinema history. After emerging from his native Australia wearing drag for the international hit "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" (1994), Weaving used his powerful and distinctive voice to good use in "Babe" (1995) and its sequel "Babe 2: Pig in the City" (1998). But he came into true prominence as the ubiquitous Agent Smith in the surprise hit sci-fi thriller, "The Matrix" (1999), and its two sequels, "The Matrix Reloaded" (2003) and "The Matrix Revolutions" (2003). He had a smaller, but no less important role as an Elf leader in "The Lord of the Rings" (2001-03) trilogy. Both franchises catapulted Weaving's career and turned him into a household name. Though he routinely went back to Australia to film smaller, more dramatic-minded fare, he always seemed to find himself right in the middle of huge Hollywood pictures, including as the voice of Megatron in "Transformers" (2007) and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" (2009), an ironic twist of fate for an actor who came to light playing a drag queen.

Name

Role

Comments

Katrina Greenwood

Companion

Together since 1984

Wallace Weaving

Father

Anne Weaving

Mother

Holly Weaving

Daughter

Born 1993: mother, Katrina Greenwood

Harry Weaving

Son

Born 1989: mother, Katrina Greenwood

Simon Weaving

Brother

Anna Weaving

Sister

Education

Name

National Institute of Dramatic Art

Knox Grammar School

Notes

"I think when your image becomes so big that it's hard for a viewer to see a character, then I think you're in danger as an actor of being unable to perform what you should be doing. And it becomes harder for you to successfully create another human being." – Weaving quoted to CNN.com, March 20, 2006